Nordo News

Tragedy at Toowoomba

2012-05-19T00:36:00.000-04:00

Those damn cameras; always there to catch the most painful moments. Here's to a speedy recovery.

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Ugh. At least this huy had an excuse for his prop ... by alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16489254543825381153noreply@blogger.com

Shoot to Kill Authorized Over Chicago?

2012-05-02T16:41:00.002-04:00

Why would they risk asking a pilot to shoot down one of his own? Drone Operators are experienced with such things. Just like camera bravery, when looking through a lens or at a screen it doesn't seem as real.

News has been swirling wildly about the upcoming NATO Summit in Chicago and the accompanying “No Fly Zone”. What has everyone all worked up? The word, or implied wording, “shoot to kill”. That may come as a shock to some of you but others have asked “Is this really any different than the usual TFR?”

Here’s what I have found. This link for a Standard TFR over Chicago is for things like sporting events; a typical TFR. Read it and you will not see any wording of shoot to kill or use of force. But, if you look at this link to the “TFR” over Chicago for the NATO Summit, you will clearly see the words “deadly force against the airborne aircraft” on the first page.

It seems it really is different from a Standard TFR and it also does seem to include the authorization to "shoot and kill" any stray airplanes. What I can't seem to find is if there is anything similar for vehicles or people on the ground. Maybe someone out there can lead me to it.

Whatever the case, don't be flying around Chicago during the summit held May 19-21, 2012.

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Lyme Disease - Could You Get It?

2012-05-01T23:44:00.002-04:00

This is a little off topic but we wanted to pass it along to our friends. Lyme Disease is real and isn’t rare despite what your doctor may tell you. How do we know? Our dog Bair, Ginger, and our friend Larry Hagen have all recently been diagnosed with it. We mention Bair because were it not for him being diagnosed with it first, Ginger’s doctor indicated that she would have initially run other tests.

Why are many doctors hesitant to give the blood test to patients? Well, it’s hard to say but the number one reason we’ve heard is that most doctors don’t think it is common or even something people in their area get. Unfortunately, that just isn’t the case. Without question, it is in our area and many other areas of the US and also other countries. Yet, Lyme disease symptoms do resemble many other disease symptoms and therefore diagnosing Lyme Disease may seem to a doctor to be a shot in the dark.

Like I said, Lyme Disease symptoms are often similar to other health issues. If a patient doesn’t remember being bitten, as is usually the case, a doctor will most likely feel the need to run heart tests, joint scans, and everything else because other things are more common and could potentially be more serious in the short term. In the long term though, Lyme Disease is something you don’t want to live with undiagnosed. If you don’t catch it early, it can be severely debilitating.

There are several things you should know about Lyme Disease. First, it is the tiny Deer Tick that carries and transmits the disease. They are usually reddish in color and they are about the size of a head of a large pin. They have to be attached to your skin for at least 24 hrs to transmit the disease but watch the area, and yourself, for symptoms of the disease should you remove one you believe has been on you less than 24 hrs. Many places say 70-80% of people with Lyme Disease get the bulls-eye rash but other more recent studies indicate as few as 30% get it. Therefore, don’t assume you don’t have it if you do not get the rash. Ginger did not get a rash. This is why it is important to look for symptoms. Here’s a site that covers them all. It also gives you a checklist. If you circle 20 or more symptoms you need to be tested.

The prescribed way to kill the bacteria that causes Lyme Disease is with antibiotics. The sooner you get the antibiotics into your system, the better your chances of getting rid of the disease without any long term health problems. But there is a problem with antibiotics. For so long, antibiotics were prescribed for so many things and so often that it began to cause a problem of super bacteria. In turn, there has been a huge movement to limit the use of antibiotics. Therefore, it now seems the pendulum has often swung too far the other way to the point doctors are hesitant to prescribe them when they would help. This leaves many physicians extra-cautious about diagnosing Lyme Disease.

If you are a doctor, feel free to add your thoughts on this subject. We are going only from what we have learned and the stories of others who have told us of their experience with this disease. Ginger was fortunate in that she had a great doctor who actively listened and obviously wanted to make sure she got the correct diagnosis. Thanks Dr. Jett.

Oh, I almost forgot, there is something very important for you to know. Studies have shown that taking 200mg of Doxycycline after a severe tick bite works like a morning after pill and keeps you from getting the disease. The problem is that you don’t want to take one of these pills every time you get a tick bite. You want to know or feel very sure the tick has been in your skin for over 24 hours. Unfortunately, over 50% of people who get Lyme Disease never knew they were bitten because the ticks are so small. Ginger was lucky because she knew of the bite. When she began to get the symptoms, she had a doctor that listened to her story and symptoms and made the decision to test for Lyme immediately. That made a huge difference.

Today, Ginger is feeling much better. Her symptoms came on during the tornado clean up and so she thought she was just worn out from all that was going on. Then she began to sleep all day and stated that she felt like she was in a fog. We remembered the bite and she went to the doctor. The diagnosis came within six weeks of the bite and thanks to that it appears she will come out the other side with no lasting issues. Even with that though, it often takes up to six months for someone like her to get over all the symptoms.

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Mirror Swift

2012-04-30T22:01:00.000-04:00

Ginger and I were outside with the dogs yesterday when a beautiful Swift flew over, dropped the gear, and proceeded to land. We had seen it working the pattern here at the field before but never knew who it belonged to. This time they taxied over and stopped.

My words to Ginger went something like this, "Holy cow! Woooo, look at that polish job. Who in the world would take that on?" Then out stepped our friend Dan Gidzinski. If you knew him, at this point it would all make sense. Dan is a perfectionist and he produces some of the finest work on aircraft I've ever seen. Yet, it seems this wasn't all his doing.

Dan bought the plane after it had sat for a while. One of the last things it had done before being parked was win a polish award at the annual Swift Fly-In. The previous owner did an amazing job and Dan was glad to take over. His reason? While he worked on perfecting and finishing the Swift project he has in his hangar, he really needed something to fly. This one fit his standards and he now owns the job of keeping the polish up.

What's involved in a job like that? Well, I won't go into detail but I can tell you that he was able to tell us how each different kind of rag works at each step in the process. He even knew of several special manufacture polishing towels and he clearly had a favorite. Like I said, Wow!

When you have a job like that, it pays to have the attention to detail Dan does. If you live in the area and you see a chrome bullet cross over your house, it's not a UFO; it's likely Dan out enjoying the sunset.

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Ernie Was Right

2012-04-30T19:45:00.000-04:00

We’ve all had them right? Those moments when fate and fortune found common ground. Our minds collect them; life’s baseball cards.

Digging through the dusty shoe box of history, one of my favorites comes to mind. Like many great cards it represents the beginning of a career. Its stats convey an image of who that person is and who they would become, the photo captures their youth, and the card itself smells like used oil and exhaust. Well, actually that last part is due to creative license. But, if there were baseball cards for pilots lost in time, I’m sure that’s what they would smell like.

Having said my goodbyes to the last ride of the morning, my mind drifted to Chici’s. Across the road from the airport was the best Cuban sandwich in town. I could almost taste the mustard when someone said “A FED is in there and he wants to talk to you”.

Most people tend to flip out when A FED shows up. Myself, I’m the opposite. Yeah sure, like everyone else I run the mental checklist to make sure I have everything I’m supposed to have but other than that, I really couldn’t care less. FEDs are, after all, just normal people with a penchant for polyester and a hard-on for paperwork. Humor them, make them feel like real people, act impressed with their knowledge of regulation minutia, and pretend that their attempts to fit in are working and they’ll pretty much always leave you alone. What most people seem to forget is that back at their office, the egg laying queen (you saw Aliens right?) is to them, what they are to us. Help a FED make the next level of incompetence happy and your life will be better for it. Got it? FEDs are people too.

Therefore, like so many times before, I set out to find THE FED. Yet before I could, he and his trainee found me. I wish I had a picture; right there in front of me was an image only government could create. A rather tall white guy wearing boots, a cowboy hat, and a Texas size attitude stood with the air of self-importance over a timid black man dressed in polyester, wearing a tie, and carrying a clip board. It was like being on the set of an Eddie Murphy movie.

While driving to Key West they had seen me fly over and turned around to let me have it. Apparently, the cowboy was sure he could accurately judge the altitude of a plane from a speeding car and was doubly sure I was too low. To prove it, he asked me how high I was. In complete shock that someone with such a great knowledge of regulation minutia and an impressive ability to fit in anywhere would ask me such a stupid question, I laughed. Looking back on it, I’m forced to consider that maybe it wasn’t such a good thing to do. Yet like the title of Ernie’s book, Fate Is the Hunter.

Honestly, it wasn't on purpose. It just snickered out. Therefore, when he asked me what was so funny, I just answered his question; “High enough”. It seemed like a good idea at the time but the look in his eyes told me I would soon be punished. It’s bad juju to openly mock a cowboy in front of a black trainee, at least it was to him, and I could see he was going to make me pay for it.

Initially I kind of felt bad for the new guy. It was obvious the queen (Aliens, remember?) had placed him with this penis dressed as a cowboy and sent them away; most likely to get cowboy out of the office. Egg layers have jackass thresholds too. Therefore, when Neal the new guy (the trainee) asked me if he could look at my plane, I said yes. While doing so, Brokeback Bob did his best to impress me with the power of his title and distract me from what was going on. When it became obvious they were going to look the plane over until they found something, I walked away and went to lunch.

Back then, Chici’s Cubans were like crack with crystal meth sprinkles. You just couldn’t get enough and I had to get my fix. Now let’s take a break and ponder me doing crack with crystal meth sprinkles. It’s a good thing I don’t do drugs because I’m pretty sure none of you would want to experience that. Right? OK, back to the story.

Walking back in the door from Chici’s, someone said “That FED's looking for you again and he isn’t happy”. And once again, before I could find him, he found me.

“Where the hell have you been; it’s a good thing you showed up; I was just about to ground your plane” he said. Then I received an amazing lesson on FAA Constitutional interpretation. According to him, once he talked to me, he owned me and I had no right to leave until he told me so. After that, we grabbed a cup of coffee, chatted about the weather, and had a rather colorful debate as to who the #&%$ he thought he was. His answer: "The guy who found a problem with your plane".

Knowing that the Miami FEDs always traveled south on Friday so they could spend the weekend there on your tax dollars, I was doing my best to set them on their way. “Don’t you guys have an appointment in Key West?” “Yes we do but first we need to show you what we found”, said the belt buckle wearing erection. Walking around to the lower left wing, he said “My trainee noticed your aileron has a problem”. That’s when the timid black guy, with a huge self-congratulating smile on his face, reached for the aileron control link that connects the surface to the belcrank in the wing.

The official Stearman repair manual shows where the link fits into the picture.

Grasping the zinc chromated part, he rocked it back and forth 1/8th of an inch or less in each direction. “See, something is obviously wrong with this part. It moves”, were his words. I honestly didn’t know what to say. He was dead serious but there was just one problem; that part has or is connected to bearings on each end that allow it to move like that. Yes, it was perfectly normal but it was clear they were going to try to make it an issue.

Turning to look at me, the cowboy said, “You’re lucky I’m not in the mood to ground your plane. Do what you want but that part has a problem”, and he turned to leave for Key West. That left me with a dilemma; replace it or not?

Walking by my friends who had gathered on the bench to watch this all go down, I could hear them laughing. Once Woody had left the building, I learned he had been building a wonderful reputation for himself. Having been run off from several FSDOs for being a trouble maker, he had landed in Miami and the word was spreading fast. Hearing this, I got nervous and went into my full-on the-best-defense-is-a-good-offense mode.

First I called a friend at the FAA. Yeah, I have (or had) friends at the FAA. Anyway, this guy looked at the double dog secret FAA computer and told me the cowboy had already added information about me. According to my buddy, it appeared he was hoping to get the next FSDO, where I hopped rides in summer, to serve me up a cold dish of trouble. Then I called an attorney. He assured me I was ok and said to call back if anything new came up. After that I called the head of the Miami FSDO. Using my FAA buddy as a reference, I gave him a detailed dissatisfied customer report. Finally I got on the horn and ordered a new aileron link that was rebuilt with new bearings and freshly painted.

One of the great things about a Stearman is if something breaks you can get the part overnighted. The expense would be worth it. If the local Rodeo star were to show up early, I’d already have it fixed with yellow tag in hand. The balls were in the air. “Tomorrow”, I thought, “I’ll see where they drop”.

Jackasses have an uncanny ability to suck the fun from anything. The next morning was proof of that. Pedaling at an increasing rate, exotic plants, colorful birds, and the warm tropical air blew by without notice. Life in The Keys was, at that point, nothing more than life with a booted bureaucrat. Ten minutes later, the UPS guy waved me in front of his truck as he rolled into the airport. The first ball, the new part, had dropped right where I wanted and when.

Tony (The Key’s best mechanic), asked me what I needed and offered any required help. Once you leave the mainland, you are part of the team. Mainlanders need not apply and the locals do their best to keep them out. If you work for the government, your ranking as a human is at the bottom of the list. Your name, on the other hand, goes to the top of the most wanted. Therefore, anyone and everyone offered a hand that day. I had become a part of the team; for a while I was part of The Keys.

Lying under the wing, a bead of sweat rolled off face and onto my neck. Performing aviation’s version of arthroscopic surgery, I could understand why you always see that person in the movies whose job it is to wipe the surgeon’s brow. A simple linkage replacement becomes tortuous when time and nature’s coolant combine to piss you off. And yet I kept turning the wrench. My life, and the patient’s, depended on it.

Almost to the last thread, I could feel the bellcrank coming loose. From here on out the procedure would require spinning the nut off by hand, removing the bellcrank, disconnecting the the FED's favorite link, and then reversing the process with the new one. Reaching into the hole, my attitude improved. The idea the FED would come back early only to find it had already been replaced put wind in my sails although I couldn't believe a perfectly good part was being replaced just for him. All I had to do was rotate it one fuuull - "CLINK, THUMP, THUD, CLUNK" went something from inside the wing. The thud was the sound of whatever it was hitting my head before dropping onto the ramp.

I still have the parts.

“What the hell was that!". Rolling over to grab it, the bushed zinc chromate color tab confused me. "That must have been in the wing for ages", I thought. “There’s no way that..”. Then I looked up and saw reality. While removing the nut from the bellcrank bolt, one ear of the casting that holds it in place had fallen free. Likewise, the assembly had fallen loose in the wing. I was stunned. A critical flight control had just disintegrated while sitting on the ground.

Upon closer inspection, it had been this way for a while. Only a small hairline of fresh metal could be seen on the ear that bounced off my noggin. One good jolt was all that separated a good day from a bad. Thanks to chance and an over-zealous FED, it had been found with my butt planted on terra firma.

“High enough”; I knew it felt right. Was it not for that response, Cowboy Bob and his sidekick Neal may have left me alone. I have no idea how or why they decided to pick on that specific aileron link. The other moved the same but they said it was ok. Perhaps it was the shiny top side where the paint had worn on the edge of the spar. Or maybe it was because the left wing had all the patches from people getting in and out of the airplane. And maybe, just maybe, it was pure dumb luck. Whatever the case, Ernie was right.

A FED showed up to cause trouble, claimed something was wrong with the plane that wasn’t, and because of my zeal to shut him down, something potentially disastrous had been found. Sometimes the cowboy gets you, and sometimes you get the cowboy. When it’s your time it’s your time and for the moment it wasn’t mine.

Note: Fred the FED, or Cowboy Bob as I called him, turned out to be the son of a man in congress. Whenever he would do something completely off the charts, they would ship him out to another FSDO instead of firing him. After I raised hell with everyone you could imagine, all the way to Oklahoma City and DC, I received a call from the Miami FSDO manager. He was sending an inspector who knew something about old planes down to see me and he would be sending the inspector in question with him. When they arrived, the guy who “knew something about old planes” stuck out his hand and said “Al Kimball”. He then proceeded to ask Bob, sans Neal, where the problem had existed. Walking around to the wing, shrinking in stature with each step, he pointed to the link and attempted to slander it. Al gave it a quick look then proceeded to give Bob a learn’n. To this day, it is one of the funniest things I’ve ever witnessed. Despite Al’s professionalism, every one of his words cut an inch off Bob’s legs. By the time they left, it felt like Al had brought a kid to my house to make him admit to and apologize for stealing something. Cowboy Bob and trainee Neal were never heard from again.

Aircraft note: If you have a Stearman and your ailerons have ever been left without the control lock on, I highly suggest you inspect those bellcrank castings. There was even a crack in the tab that broke off. It went all the way through from the bushing to the apex of the piece.

What’s your "Fate Is the Hunter" story?

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We Could Get 1600 Hrs Out of an 1830

2012-04-25T14:03:00.002-04:00

This is what a "dropped valve" does to a piston. Many years ago, WL Paris was flying for the family business when one engine developed a "small problem".

Listening to my friend describe his treasures, I could see a smile in his eyes. Every guy, and I suppose every gal, has some point in their life they’d like to revisit. Whatever their sex may be though, commonalities exist among those favorite memories.

Passion, risk, and reward season the most bland of life’s days and tenderize the toughest cuts. Monotonous turns momentous and misery becomes memory when they are at hand. How else could one explain the excitement in his voice as he handed me the stressed metal?

From a distance the part was recognizable; in hand unbelievable. Once a piece of mechanical artwork, the piston was ugly defined. Pounded repeatedly by the head of an errant valve, its original tolerances were a distant memory. Only now after decades of darkness and dust does it again have purpose. It is history; a mile marker in time.

“There was a small miss but it kept running; occasionally it would backfire. Today’s engine couldn’t do that,” my friend said. He was right.

WL Paris owns and operates Central American Airways out of Bowman Field in Louisville. The company was started by his father and two friends immediately after WWII. Back then they offered the first non-stop flight from Louisville to New York. Their aircraft of choice was a DC-3. Eventually though, they operated across the planet using Connies, Convair 880’s, and many other airframes; then came de-regulation. But, that is a story for another time.

Today Central American Airways is easily described as the most successful charter company in the area. While going through family and business heirlooms, WL recently came across an original Central American passenger manifest from 1947, his father’s RAF uniform from a time before the US was in the war, and among many other things, this piston and valve. If I can ever get him to slow down long enough to make sure my details are correct, I’ll tell you the entire Central American story.

The valve that once helped power a DC-3 made itself a nice little bed in the top of this piston. It should be noted, Central American had the engines figured out to the point they were able to get as much as 1600 hours out of an 1830. Anyone who operates DC-3s today will know how amazing that number is.

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Video of P-40 Found in Desert

2012-04-22T23:18:00.001-04:00

This video of a P-40, discovered in the Al Wadi al Jadid Desert, was recently published on youtube. The two part series (part one, part two)appears to show locals more concerned with making a quick buck and grabbing the still loaded guns than selling it for big money to a collector. Judging by the post, rumors of the find were floating around and the person posted the video to prove its existence.

If anyone knows more about this aircraft and the person who posted the video, we'd love to hear from you. Is this truly a recent find, is the plane still there, and are there plans to rescue it?

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Ginger Resigns From Event Planner Position

2012-04-17T17:19:00.000-04:00

I have resigned my position as event planner at Lee Bottom Flying Field.

As a marketing professional, you know you’ve been effective when you see others replicating your slogans, sayings, advertising, and pretty much everything you do. They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery, but frankly, I’ve grown tired of it. Yes, it is nice to know my efforts have inspired others to do better. But now that we’re here, I’ve decided to gracefully bow out of this race to look for greener pastures. The next direction for grass runway airports is about to launch. And so it begins; the effort to once again set our airport apart as that special place everyone loves to enjoy.

Some of you are probably thinking, “What marketing? Huh? We don’t see your airport’s flyers on event boards at our airport. What are you talking about?” And, to that, I say “exactly”. There is more to marketing than putting up flyers.

You may not realize it but we work full-time on marketing the airport and events. If you doubt that because you haven’t seen Lee Bottom advertisements or flyers posted everywhere or lying on every table at every other event you go to, ask yourself “Why is their fly-in and airport so popular?” I’ll tell you why. It’s a FULL TIME JOB and we are available as consultants if you want to make your brand known and take advantage of our knowledge.

As for the events, I started helping with the fly in during 2001 when the entire thing lasted a few hours on a Saturday afternoon. Back then it only included lunch, and the day we reached 100 planes we thought we had hit a milestone. During these early years, it took a month to brown the meat for the big pots of chili we stayed up all night simmering. There were no port a pots, no tents, no special t shirts, and no auto parking section. We didn’t have showers nor did we have hot water for the public restroom. There were no overnight campers and 2 picnic tables sufficed for everyone. The restroom facility was a dirty, filthy mess filled with spiders and lady bugs. Signs were made the morning of the event with markers and poster board, there was one event vehicle, and we did not spend the week prior laying down parking lines. Furthermore, the aircraft parking area was only 10 acres instead of the 40 acres available today. We had no special operating procedures for arrivals nor did we have coffee for those that arrived early. There was no website, no logo, no special Lee Bottom attire, and your ticket for lunch was a clothespin which had been scavenged from the many thousands Fritz had purchased throughout the years for some unknown reason. Rich’s old room mate flew over the night before and used the weed whacker on the tall grass around the shelter building so visitors could find the picnic tables. Green moss grew on the siding of all the buildings, which also needed painted, and there were no flowers or plants growing anywhere - actually there were tall weeds everywhere. Mayor Maggie and Sir Cory were the only volunteers and neither of them was old enough to legally drive. Myself, I even had time to fly during the day of the event.

As this atmosphere became more and more popular, we struggled with ways to keep it going. But as the years wore on, our old friends stopped coming. My only guess is that they thought we had money and should be entertaining them for free. Instead, they were replaced with new friends who longed for a place like this. Yet, at some point, it became apparent something had changed.

With new friends came those that didn’t understand. They had never met Fritz, didn’t know the history of the airport, nor did they seem to care. We had some pretty contentious arguments with people who wanted to cross the runway while planes were landing while others couldn’t seem to grasp that the only way we could continue to host these growing events was to charge for attendance. And still others didn’t follow the very few simple rules thus placing the event and airport’s existence in jeopardy for their own self fulfillment. Despite these issues though, I have to say the majority of attendees were, and are, really awesome and they rapidly became members of our new airport family.

In the past 12 years, the airport has seen its share of weather phenomena. We’ve had a blizzard that collapsed a hangar and crushed planes, a certified Midwest hurricane that took out the electricity for a week prior to the September fly-in, an ice storm that left us without power during the cold winter months, droughts that killed the grass, torrential downpours that washed away thousands of pounds of newly sown grass seed, all time record setting rain storms that caused all of the aircraft parking areas on the field to be mud which resulted in a cancelled event, and the river has flooded into our auto parking areas. But, this year’s smiting was the worse and it has taken a toll on us: The Tornado of March 2, 2012.

During all those years, with one exception, events have gone on despite weather phenomena, broken bones, and family emergencies. We have rescheduled surgeries, attended events in pain, missed weddings and funerals. Vacations have been postponed and missed all together to make sure that events can be held. Our home needed remodeling but it always took a backseat to the welfare of the airport and the events.

If you could have seen the inside of the buildings when I arrived for the first time in May 2001, you’d understand. Fritz had not been gone long and Rich was struggling to do it all himself. You can not believe the disarray of papers, clutter, and utter mess. It was barely suitable for human life. Slowly though, things were cleaned, painted, washed, and organized. In 2001, the tools, equipment, and associated hardware were all laying in the middle of the shop floor. You couldn’t find the top of a 30’ work bench if your life depended on it. Things were picked up, put into piles of similarity, and eventually into labeled boxes.

The costs for maintenance were evaluated and savings made wherever possible. Fuel purchased in bulk at the right times, utility bills combined and re-evaluated, heating and cooling issues were addressed, winterization of plumbing and pipes were changed to make them simpler and more effective, and we operated under-insured for property damage. Yet, we kept the runway expansion going despite problems at every turn. Everything was for the airport so that people would have a great place to fly. And now as it turns out, all the cleaning and organizing of the equipment, tools, and such was futile because it is currently worse than it was the first day I arrived. Thanks to the tornado, if our lives depended up on it, it would be difficult to find or get to a screwdriver.

Maybe I should get back to the events; otherwise I could go on for days about the time spent managing the airport that is allocated to meetings, phone calls, letters, and emails sent to people to help our cause.

Last year, we had 3 people who stepped up and helped us coordinate some areas of the fly in throughout the year. Thinking that we could continue this technique and keep the events going, we enlisted the help of others. The help that we were looking for was that of event planning and implementation. The first meeting was very successful with over 30 in attendance. The 2^nd meeting however produced 6 attendees plus us. It was held just days after a tornado hit our home.

Not being ones to give up, instead of rebuilding our lives, both of us spent an entire Tuesday planning for the meeting. When we arrived to six people, we felt abandoned. We have a rule that everything for the fly in needs to be planned by May 1 so we can spend the rest of the summer implementing the plan. At this point, we were only weeks away from this deadline and the event facilities were gone or in shambles, most of our equipment was damaged by wind or water and our help had disappeared. Were we really the only ones who cared if aviation stayed alive for others to enjoy? What? You thought we did these events and provided the airport for our own personal enjoyment and enrichment? That’s about as silly as the person who thought we were going to get rich off of FEMA payments after the tornado.

Hoping that most would take the initiative and see what needs to be done, we asked individuals at the meeting to prepare a document on what they planned to do for their respective areas of responsibility. That simple task would save us some critical spare time. Yet, only 2 people followed through on this assignment. Again, we saw the trend.

But this isn’t meant to blame the people who had the courage to step up and offer to help. They went one step further than many others. Far too many people are eager to sit in the background and tell you how to do things but very few actually rise to the challenge of doing them.

When it comes to money, the event is financially draining. There is an old saying that goes “He who spends freely has many friends”. Unfortunately we aren’t into buying friends. We’re into helping aviation but the reality is that putting on these events in addition to operating the airport is financially draining. Here are the generalized, annual, rounded figures which have been going up at break-necking speeds:

Airport operation expenses $30,000

Event expenses $30,000

Grand total $60,000

We were recently told by a helpful soul that we should hire an event planner. Well, that sounds good in theory but it would cost an additional $30,000 minimum and that was already being done successfully, and for free, by me. Additionally, a committee of assistants would still be needed. Furthermore, most airport managers make around $50,000. This too is something I have been doing as a volunteer. If you’re mad at me for making this decision or you think I’m ungrateful, think again. I hope that you can see that I have been doing my part. All I wanted was for others to be involved and committed to helping me.

2011 left us with 2 additional debts to pay off:

1) Fly in weather was average and left us with a $7000 bill;

2) The runway received an extensive fall maintenance program because of the effects of the past 3 years weather phenomena’s causing the expenditure to be twice the normal amount with an additional $8000 going to a special herbicide treatment, fertilizer, and overseeding program.

Although we do get contributions from the calendar mailings, this funding typically covers the calendars themselves and the current year grass maintenance fund, with us footing the additional $15,000 in operational expenses (we understand that is our choice). The events also bring in some revenue but have yet to cover the expenses as can be seen by the bill we are still trying to pay for 2011. Therefore, although we have managed to pay down some of the debt from last year, we have additional expenses for this one that are currently mounting.

Having recently watched the movie ‘Courageous’, there was a line from this movie that made me realize that what I am doing is not important in the grand scheme of life. “You can't fall asleep at the wheel only to wake up one day and realize that your job or hobbies have no eternal value”. The tornado and the events surrounding it have made me realize that I was ‘asleep at the wheel’ and there are things I could be doing which would provide eternal value. I’m sorry that planning events for the airport, at least how they are currently held, is not one of them. If it were, more people would be here and committed to making it happen.

Ginger

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Ginger, I was Chairman of the Cincinnati Lunken ... by Charliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06161076406699494599noreply@blogger.com
Well said Ginger. Jed Keck by Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com
Ginger, I can understand your position complete... by Terry Bowdenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10282056570886230326noreply@blogger.com

The Road Forward

2012-04-17T16:12:00.001-04:00

There is a theory that exists that says in order to be successful, in business or life, occasionally you have to tear it all down and build something new.

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Interesting Book

2012-04-17T11:01:00.001-04:00

A book review from our friend Tom Lowe:

Dr. William Lloyd Stearman, the son of famed aviation pioneer, Lloyd C. Stearman, has recently published a memoir which should garner the attention of anyone who has any interest whatever in early aviation, WWII in the Pacific as a Naval Officer, life in the diplomatic service in Europe during the Cold War, the Vietnam War, and the workings of the White House National Security Council staff.

This book, titled: AN AMERICAN ADVENTURE From Early Aviation Through Three Wars to the White House, is published by the Naval Institute Press and is available on Amazon as well as other book sources.

Of particular interest to Stearman enthusiasts are his recollections of the lives and history of various members of the Stearman family, their interactions and of the many of aviation’s famous personalities that he encountered as a young boy at his home, as well as at the Stearman factory. He also describes how the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation (now Lockheed Martin) came into being. His father was its first president.

This volume displays his keen insight into life from the 1920s to the present and his opinions and perspective on world affairs and leaders is very insightful and persuasive. It is one which should join the list of required history reading. His elegant prose and writing style makes for a very interesting and informative easy read. I enjoyed it immensely and highly recommend it to all.

Moreover, I agree with John F. Lehman, Reagan’s Secretary of the Navy and author of several books, who wrote “With a novelist’s sense of drama and a historian’s rigor, he had given us a real page turner full of insight and anecdote.”

Thomas E. Lowe

President - National Stearman Fly-In

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And Then The Winds Came

2012-04-17T02:41:00.002-04:00

Here it is coming over the hill.

Two free tetanus shots and a world of giving; that’s what we got out of it. If you think there’s anything else to be had after such a disaster, you’re dreaming. Once the Weather Channel collects stories to sandwich between commercials and the government puts a pretty face on everything, they drive away and leave you with a mess. Fortunately, our friends were an enthusiastic lot showing up daily to help us clean up the tornado's mess.

Wait, you didn’t know we were hit by a tornado? Really? How could you not know? It was covered by every major publication in the township of Fritzville Indiana. Where have you been?

Oh well, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. We ourselves just figured out today that we are going to have to rebuild and some decisions will have to be made. So then, in all fairness, I should fill you in on what happened.


Here it has just left the sheep pasture and hit the river. Note the second one coming into view.

Six weeks of chaos, five weeks of fighting the county for our neighbors, four weeks of waiting on the insurance company, two weeks of looking for a new car, ten days of living in a hotel, eight days of clean up, five days of walking the runway, three of disbelief, two days of temporary repairs, and one day’s worth of hell, is how we’ve spent our time since March 2nd. That’s when the tornado hit Lee Bottom.

One local crossroad that was devastated.

So that you won’t have to ask the same questions everyone else has, I'll just give you the answers. When the tornado hit, I was at work and Ginger was here. Fortunately, my little AM radio was on and our local stations were doing an excellent job of reporting where it was. Basically, the tornado was coming straight for the airport. Hearing that it was heading her way, fifteen minutes before it hit, she ran across the road to a neighbors storm shelter. There she waited with our friends. Tightly secured underground, they heard it approach, whip things around, and roar past. At the time they were sure they were going to open the door to a home that was no more. Fortunately, it survived mostly intact and Ginger ran out to check on the sheep, donkey, bees, house, and pets. All of them came through unscathed except the home and the bees.

Here you can see the shop that was blown to bits.

Our house lost part of its roof and received water damage. It is still under tarp. For now we are able to live in it but not for long. The shop/garage was destroyed. Inside was all our equipment and tools. Unfortunately, it was also the place where nearly everything we do here on a daily basis happened or originated. Since it is, er, was attached to the hangar, the hangar also received a blow. One of the hangar doors was ripped off with the other three being bent beyond reasonable repair. The roof of the hangar also received damage. Amazingly, neither the Cub nor Champ inside moved; not even an inch. Weird.

Three of our trees, one of them my favorite, our prize maple sap producer, and an heirloom apple were lost. Two cars were destroyed and the one metal patio where so many event functions were held was destroyed in the process of damaging our primary tractor and another mower. Fifty feet away our log cabin was moved on its foundation resulting in everything inside being broken. Simultaneously, thirty or so plastic Adirondack chairs were shredded as three picnic tables were crushed and one was thrown 100’ through our garage door. Yep, it was a first class tornado; well, actually it was an F-something but who’s counting right?

Need we say more?

Across the road four small sheep barns were blown to bits, two sheep hutches were ripped from the ground, fencing was wadded up, and a farm wagon was tossed like a toy. Flying through the air and landing next to it was our steel dumpster from over 600 feet away. Meanwhile, tens of trees were twisted, ripped, or toppled from the ground. Dropping in randomly among this chaos were many of the things blown from the shop as its walls collapsed.

Piercing the ground evenly across every acre, tree limbs stabbed the earth leaving the appearance of a planet size porcupine. Well traveled plaster, plywood, and sheet metal fell from the sky. It was the classic tornado story. Likewise, similar to most people hit by tornadoes, we ate a significant amount of green ($). Unless you are significantly over-insured, that’s just how it goes.

Now for what we learned.

FEMA: Everyone asks about “FEMA money”. This is both hilarious and sad. Apparently, even the most well healed conservative believes or thinks the government is going to ride in to the rescue. That just isn’t the truth. In fact, what FEMA was most interested in was collecting data on families and their homes and whether or not they had any underground rooms.

After disasters like these, everyone is told to file with FEMA to see if there is any assistance available. Folks then spend twenty minutes filling out a long form which requires them to offer up all sorts of information about their lives. Finally, the very last thing you are asked is “How much do you make?” 99.99999% of the time, this income is too high to receive any “FEMA money”. In fact, the threshold for “FEMA money” is so low that you would damn near have to be homeless to qualify for it. Oddly though, before our area was declared a disaster area, FEMA, TSA, Homeland Security, and the SBA came to our home to run up the tab. What’s “the tab”?

The tornado hit the cemetery where Fritz is buried. If you look closely you'll see his headstone slid on the foundation.

Well, to be declared a disaster area there has to be a certain dollar amount of damage done to the area. Without that level being reached, these groups don’t get money to play with. Therefore they go around looking at things that were damaged and dream up wildly inappropriate dollars amounts to assign to them. Thus they, the foxes in the hen-house, run up “the tab” in order to get additional tax money allotted to them so they can go around collecting more information on you or handing money out to people who likely didn’t have $31,000 worth of stuff to begin with. $31,000 is the max amount that was available in our area. Everyone else is told to apply to the SBA for a low interest loan.

Did you get that? The SBA helps run up “the tab” so that they can get an additional allotment of tax dollars in order to loan them back to you. That’s a nice little padding of the bureaucracy. Next door (at the one stop shop) the IRS representative tells everyone that it is very difficult to write off storm losses. Back at the FEMA desk, they tell you not to give up.

Here in Indiana, when disasters hit, our state sets up locations called “one stop shops”. These are places where everyone you might need to talk to after such a disaster is located in one place. That's where we talked to all these groups. It is also where we received the only governmental plus entry on our tornado balance sheet. What was it? We each got a free tetanus shot.

But wait, I’m not done.

Part of our cleaning crew. Notice the trees where the tornado went up the other side of the river bottom.

Among the other lessons we learned was that we will never give to the Red Cross. This group seems to have become a mere shell of what it once was. Today our experience tells us that it serves mostly to collect information and make its donors feel like it is really doing something by offering bottled water and blankets the first day. Unfortunately for the organization, local residents, churches, and even people who traveled overnight from far away, did a far better job of both. The Red Cross was nothing more than flashy vehicles with uniformed personnel poorly attempting to do jobs done much better by others. If you love the Red Cross, we’re sorry but that’s true. In one local place, the Red Cross folks had some words with a church group. Apparently the well uniformed Red Cross soldiers didn’t like the church butting into their territory. Seriously, it was amazing how many different people brought up the Red Cross and how disappointed they were in their efforts.

FEMA, TSA, and Homeland Security are a joke. I know I know; you already knew that but hey I have a story to tell.

We were all in the middle of the clean up a day after the storm when I heard Ginger’s voice and the words “We don’t like you”. Naturally wanting to investigate such an odd statement, I walked over to see who all these people gathered around her were. You guessed it; it was FEMA, TSA, and Homeland Security, plus the SBA. When Ginger introduced me, the TSA guy said to me “So what do you think of us?” At which point I replied, “We don’t like you”. That’s when the little (literally) troll of a lady representing FEMA said in an incredibly annoying condescending shrill bureaucratic voice “Well that’s what’s great about this country; we can all have our opinions”. Then she asked us about our 8 million dollar VORTAC she heard was destroyed. If you’ve been paying attention, this is the point you should look up and too one side as if you are thinking back about something prophetic. Done correctly, above your head a memory cloud should appear, and in that cloud should be the image of me saying, with an echo to my voice “RUNNING UP THE TAB running up the tab running up the tab”. Fortunately for the FEMA lady, the TSA guy spoke to me again at which point I recognized him. Not knowing from where, I asked. He had worked with the police department (don’t ask) and he said “Well, I don’t really like TSA either but labeling me as TSA was the only way we could get money to fund my position”.

Did you get that one? Yep, the hits just keep on coming. If I need to explain, you should just go back to filling out your TSA application.

Here you can see a few of the holes in the hangar roof.

Despite our conversation, it took us a full week to get them to accept the fact our $500 Davis weather station was not worth 8 mil. Ultimately, their estimated dollar damage to our house was equal to the insurance company’s estimate on everything we lost (debate that among yourselves), and our FEMA numbers helped the area be declared a disaster. Yes, that's right, ur house helped FEMA, TSA, Homeland Security, and the SBA gain funds that we did not qualify for unless we were willing to pay them interest. Hmmmmm. Are you starting to understand why so many places today are labeled “disaster areas”?

As for the real help, located in each county were several food banks that were actually more like miniature Wal-Marts sans weird people. Everything you could ever need or want was available in abundance for free to anyone hit by the tornado. Food, cleaning supplies, water, storage containers, diapers, you name it they had it. Most or all of these were located in churches and the people running them were wonderful. It was such an amazing sight I asked them where it all came from. The answer? It came from individuals and business owners. Not one item in the storehouse was government supplied and they were having serious problems getting much of it to those hit by the storm. The biggest problem being that the people of our area are proud people who insist on taking care of themselves. Therefore, the biggest effort went toward getting them to understand that others wanted to help and this was how they were doing it and that it wasn’t a handout. It was a gift from nameless friends. Seeing that example of giving almost makes me tear up with pride from writing about it. We live in the greatest country in the world with the greatest people who ever lived.

Other forms of giving also impressed us. The Lions Club is apparently well experienced and skilled at disaster relief. Their method was the best. Direct and easy, this organization went to great lengths to find out who had been hit by the storm and then they gave gift cards to those people in an effort to help them clean up or rebuild. Similarly, some churches had locations where those affected by the tornado could pick up gift cards. Although there were a few random cards from different businesses in the mix which were donated, the vast majority of gift cards we saw or heard of were donated by Wal-Mart. Remember that the next time you slam this retailing giant.

When it comes to us specifically, Girls Inc, a group for which Ginger is a board member, sent us a Lowe’s card which was extremely useful. They also gave us a card for our favorite sandwich shop which was a perfect gift. Having never been through something like this, most people do not have the knowledge of what is really needed and when. Everyone wants to hand out water, and although that is useful, there are many other things you can do that would better benefit those affected by such a disaster.

After a storm, many people are without livable homes. Therefore, restaurant cards offer a welcome respite from what’s just happened. Likewise, a card from a place like Lowe’s is extremely handy. Gas cards are also a great idea as long as a family’s cars aren’t destroyed. Yet, even then if they are borrowing a car or being offered rides, it gives these people a way to get themselves around by also not feeling as though they are taking too much. I can tell you from experience, pride does come into the mix and despite the fact everyone wants to give, it is often hard to feel as though you are not just taking. Gift cards offer a way for people affected by a disaster to give back to the community while getting the things they so desperately need.

One unique example of kindness came from a guy in Indianapolis who owns a billboard company. Today’s billboards are printed on material that can best be described as mega-tarps. Super strong and wear resistant, once each specific advertisement has run its course and been pulled down from the sign frame, they are often sold to farmers or other folks as tarps. This gentleman brought a truck load and gave them to people who could use them on their homes or whatever. The idea of a used sign being handy seems odd on the surface but in the end they were extremely useful to many people.

And I can’t forget Wolverine. This company dropped off a load of waterproof shoes and boots for anyone affected by the storm. They were set out at the Chelsea General Store and as people came through, they sorted through them, found what they liked, and off they went with a new pair of kicks.

In this photo you can see the path of the tornado, to the horizon, by following the smoke from burning debris piles.

But back to those proud people; A few days after FEMA first showed up they came around again to look for more damage dollars. While here, that little whiney lady actually complained about how quickly people were getting the clean up done. Yeah, our extended neighbors were not making these government folks look good. With nobody groveling at the feet of FEMA, it became obvious they were a little put off by it. That’s your government; upset that there are still people who can take care of themselves.

Thankfully, not everything was bad about this storm. To start with, our friends Mike and Crystal Korff were very helpful. I was flying with Mike when I learned of the tornado strike. About the same time, not knowing we had been hit, Crystal sent Ginger this light hearted text, “Isn’t it great the guys always leave us at home for these storms”? Ginger was able to get into her smashed car, hook her phone up to the charger, and call her back to let her know we’d been hit. After that, Crystal ran out to buy tarps and started making her way to our place through multiple turns and back-road switchbacks. There was so much stuff lying everywhere, I’m still not sure how she made it. When Mike and I landed back in Louisville that night, he rode home with me in case there was something he could do to help and to then catch a ride home with Crystal.

A power tranmission tower up on the hill from us that was blown over.

After the tornado, over thirty people from all over creation appeared to help us clean up. Friends far and wide arrived to put in time helping us in our time of need. Most of them surely had better things to do and most of them likely had important things to do. Yet all of them came that day to help, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day. For a full week people did their best to help. One friend drove from five hours away, others flew in, and quite a few of my co-workers even came to help. Wherever, whomever, or for whatever reason they came, they were and still are greatly appreciated.

As for other positives, thanks to the storm we now know many more of our extended area neighbors. They are a widely varied bunch of good people and we’ve enjoyed our time with them despite the terrible circumstances. This is a story in itself that we will tell you about in the future. Therefore, let me wrap this up.

Right now, we are seriously struggling with how to move forward. Enough damage has happened to make significant rebuilding necessary but what and how to rebuild is the question. Nearly everything we have is damaged to the point that bulldozing and rebuilding would be equal to repairing yet doing so would pretty much put us out of commission for a long time. On the other hand, repairs are just repairs despite the benefits of shorter finish times. Whatever we do we’ll have to redo plumbing, wiring, concrete, and the well; all of it. Like so many other things, to look at the damage it doesn’t look that bad. But with a little understanding of the details, it becomes a nightmare. The decisions yet to be made are not easy. And yet we came through much better than others. Some of the people in our area lost family members and every square inch of their homes.

A Pilot's Sunrise Service

2012-04-08T01:31:00.000-04:00

There is a time of day I love, that I rarely see. The onset of darkness means nothing to me. Yes it is morning, the best time to be free.

Many of my best memories are framed by sunrise. One of those is the subject of this post and the reason for the lines above.

Mostly perfect with its deep first light glow, black silhouettes define the horizon as if the sky were cut free from the Earth. The manicured edge reveals all that existed before night trimmed it away. The trees are most obvious and their limb to limb splits. With exponential fray toward the limits of canopies, the planet’s veined inner workings appear to the eye as an unforeseen hand placed upon light. It is magic beyond magicians with truth denied astronomers; no tricks up the sleeve and no formula for understanding.

Purity defined, a clean slate is morning delivered; each day a new life for the living; the movie version of the book that has yet to be written. The Earth is my prison and my pen has wings.

A brisk walk of intent implies a fleeting chance. My escape from this place lies in the dark and I have little time. My secret is out.

Warm pools of air pass over my senses. “I am here”, they say; the sprites of sunrise. “Flowers and fescue come 'round to lift your soul”. The planet’s exhale expresses the unseen; its fragrance a reminder that I should return.

Like horse to a hitch, the ship stirs with tension released from the rope; dew drums on the canvas and my leather it crunches. Inside the cockpit goggles fog from my breath; the craft shakes under power; a mind stirs.

With a vector of color against a fresh new sky, a two-dimension world is about to turn three. My wings shall make it so; something the avians know. It is why they sing the chorus of morning.

Yep, That Pretty Much Covers It.

2012-03-30T18:24:00.000-04:00

My Position and Hold Has Lined Up to Wait

2012-03-30T01:54:00.000-04:00

Several years ago, after a particularly discouraging four day trip, I sat down at home, fired up the computer, and was immediately confronted with headlines about commercial airline passengers. During an otherwise normal flight, one had flipped out and it was the story of the day. The question; why is this happening? My response; who cares?

My indifference may sound harsh but my reasoning was simple. With the pilot population on the precipice of breakdown, why were we worrying about passengers?

Don’t act like this is a surprise. Flight crew bar escapades have been a subject of conversation for decades. Publicly, pilots are derided one month for drinking on overnights and the next pitied for the world’s most stressful job. Yet the two are always left standing alone. They make much better stories that way. Fortunately, nature always creates balance and my observations tell me that for many pilots, despite what doctors may say, beer and stress actually do form a workable balance. There’s just one problem. A new factor has entered the picture.

After 9/11, America lost what was left of its proverbial mind. Citizen psyches were running scared and they wanted someone else to make it all better. Having been coddled for far too long, the American mind wasn’t up to the task, and so it turned to government. At this point, let’s just all agree to make a very long and pathetic story short; Homeland Security and TSA were created to make you feel like you were being protected. Like it or not, you wanted it and you got it. The creation of these agencies shipped the last vestiges of common sense into permanent exile.

Don’t act like this is a surprise either. We’ve all known it from day one. Those who are most likely to attack an airliner were given a pass while grannies and kids were subjected to cavity searches. As for the people who fly the planes, they were treated to psychological warfare.

Pilots, by nature, have an inherent ability to assess risk. Additionally, due to the nature of the job, they must also be somewhat intelligent, logical, skilled, and self-confident. Do you see the ticking time-bomb here? Wait, I see someone in the back of the room raising their hand, yes, you sir, can you tell me what it is? “Yeah, these are all things that fly in the face of Homeland Security and TSA”. Ding ding ding, we have a winner. Did you hear that folks? That guy in the back corner; the one refusing to give us his name for fear of a TSA reprisal, is correct. After 9/11 Americans chose to allow our government to subject employees, of one of the world’s most stressful jobs, to psychological warfare. What? You think I’m exaggerating?

With the occurrence of 9/11, pilots flying for airlines of the United States were deemed, by our government, a significant threat to the safety of America. With that, a good job turned horrible. Subjected to searches beyond belief, profiled and interrogated like enemy combatants, and forced to defer to people whose jobs were advertised on pizza boxes, pilots struggled to remain calm. Most of them, being proud Americans, sucked it up as an over-reaction and assumed it would all soon end. Then it got worse.

"Remove your shoes, you have too much shampoo, unbuckle your belt", and "we’ll have to confiscate those nail clippers" were among the endless ever-changing top secret list of things best described as a dog and pony show. "Show me your ID, I have to hold your ID, your ID can’t be in a lanyard, your ID must be on a lanyard, yes I know you are on the paperwork but pilots who don’t have our local ID must be escorted to the plane, I know you just flew this plane in but I have to see your ID to make sure you aren’t trying to hijack this plane, What? My ID? I don’t have to show you my ID, everyone must display an ID, I’m the TSA I don’t have to show you my ID, I need another form of ID, I need to make sure your ID isn’t forged, your ID must be on an outer garment, your ID must be protected from theft", and my personal favorite “Yeah your ID passed but it could just be a really good forgery” were merely a small sample of the things heard on any given four day trip.

“Please step aside for additional screening” was a particularly sore spot. Pilots have far better background checks than TSA agents but were constantly flagged for additional screening. Before long, aviators realized that they were being pulled aside because TSA agents knew it would be an easy screen for them. When they began to voice this issue, they were threatened loudly, treated with suspicion, and made to feel as though Gitmo was in their future. Then, at some point, the random additional screening of pilots was quietly dropped. Gate agents everywhere celebrated.

Although some issues were addressed, there was still a problem. Pilots are logical independent thinkers and also privy to all parts of the transportation system. In fact, I believe they are the only people who almost daily see every part of airline operations. Therefore they also spot the weaknesses. After years of knowing and watching the folks who work the ramp and load bags bypass security, many pilots began to express concern. After all, a lot of these people fit the profile of the terrorist who took over the planes on 9/11 and the fact they could potentially come to work with a bomb in their lunch bag, bypass security, and then load it in their plane after the pilots spent half an hour trying to explain to a guy, whose last job was a toll booth operator, that they need access to the aircraft in order to actually fly people to their destinations, was beyond anything any logical independent mind could handle. The length of that sentence is relative. When one pilot video taped it as proof, he was threatened with some of the highest crimes on the books. Today, rampers still bypass security.

Airlines filed bankruptcy, executives took bonuses for decreasing losses, and pilots took pay cuts and lost their retirement. Hours increased, income decreased, love of country vanished, flying lost its sparkle, and in the end the only thing left, a respectable job, disappeared. In its place was left that of a glorified bus driver. When pilots complained, they were made fun of for having easy jobs and crying about lost wages. Even their own kind mocked them despite no real understanding of the job. While GA pilots complained the world thought every pilot was rich, they bashed on airline pilots for being so. It was a no win situation and many of those who had useful degrees quit flying to take up jobs with better hours, income, and stability. Meanwhile, people whose dream it was to be an airline pilot jumped at the chance to pursue it only to find it was a myth. Unfortunately, this always happened after borrowing well over $100,000 to get the $24,000 per year job.

Today American pilots must have the words “English Proficient” on their licenses to be legal while airlines and ATC hire people who can’t speak it. “Position and hold” has changed to “line up and wait” because we need to be more like other countries despite their safety records that rarely stand up to ours. The FAA is passing rules to promote puppy mill flight schools while simultaneously holding conferences to discuss the alarming loss of basic flying skills in the airlines. FOQA, a silly flight monitoring program that demands a flying technique so sterile FO’s can never learn and all the Captains can do is forget is all the rage. And last but not least, TSA just keeps getting bigger.

Clearly, all these things fly in the face of logic. Independent, confident, intelligent people have no problem seeing this. For that reason, they have paid the price. The pilots of yesterday are not acceptable in the post 9/11 world; hence the psychological warfare. Am I saying this was something planned and executed with the intent of tearing down pilots to the point of accepting that which is not acceptable? I just don’t know. Yet planned or not, that is what they have done. Unfortunately, there's still a problem. Prisoners of war routinely lose their minds. One pilot has already done so and I suspect he'll not be the last.

"Psychological warfare employs any weapon to influence the mind of the enemy. The weapons are psychological only in the effect they produce and not because of the weapons themselves."

The Fly-In – How’s it Going

2012-03-26T23:35:00.000-04:00

As you may remember, a while back we put out the call for help with the fly-in. From our perspective, the time had finally come for everyone to vote up or down on the event. But, there was a problem with that idea. Getting a good even sampling of the fly-in population in order to get a quantifiable outcome would be difficult. Therefore, we resorted to an old standby method used by many groups facing the same problem. Put out a call for help and see how many people show up. The number of people that actually show are compared to accepted percentages that relate to the larger group. Then if the total crowd falls above the line, your results fall in the “highly support” area. And, of course, if it is below the line it is in the “not much support” area.

Then the day came for the meeting.

As people began to arrive, Ginger and I began to feel much better about all the effort we had put into this thing. Lining the walls were giant post-in sheets. On these pages were the areas in which we needed someone to take responsibility. Out to the side, people were given a place to post their ideas. It is hard for someone to understand how many different things need to be considered for such an event and just writing them all down was a chore. Yet, with more people coming in by the minute, we were sure the critical areas would be covered and our efforts would yield some results.

During the meeting we discussed everything. Should we have the event? Should we continue to have Sinful Sundays? Should we have more or less of each? Should we do something else all together? Were there any other ideas? Whatever the answers were, they needed to make sense for the future of the airport and the bottom line. Ultimately, everyone agreed we should have the events and we moved forward.

Next, attendees were told that sponsorship was critical to the bottom line of the fly-in. And once again people stepped up and agreed to find sponsorships. Things were moving right along.

Finally, to round out this abbreviated synopsis, it was explained that we would meet once a month and that since Ginger and myself have to be here for all important events, anyone who was agreeing to be part of this was also agreeing to do the same. It was ok to say no but if you said yes you agreed to it. This meant that for someone to miss a meeting on a date not already on their schedules would be a no-no. Further explained, this means that family members don't get ill, daughters don’t get married on these dates, and a deep gash to the leg or a broken bone is certainly not an excuse. We have been and would have to be here despite all the above and so if they were going to get us to keep holding the fly-in by agreeing to volunteer, then they were in it for the long haul themselves. Oh yeah, I forgot that one; helping for one year is not the help we need. Every year someone drops out is a year we have to train people and therefore short term sympathy volunteerism is of no help to us. Yeah, we appreciate everyone who wants to help but we're trying to make some long term plans and we need people willing to do the same.

Ok, so there you have it. That is what the meeting was about. Some of it may have seemed rather blunt be we wanted to be clear about what we needed while also making it clear there would be no foul if someone wasn't up for it. Then we ended with everyone signing up for items and offering ideas.

Within ten days were we a third of the way to our sponsorship goals, people were working on improvements, and ideas were flowing freely. Then we were hit by the tornado. Two full weeks is what we spent on clean up and it still is not complete.

Naturally, this put our fly-in efforts on hold. Thus having worked non-stop on clean up, we decided that at the next meeting we would discuss where everyone was with their goals and how to move forward with much of our critical infrastructure destroyed. There was just one problem; would anyone be there? We wanted to believe but our education told us otherwise.

Our education won out. Only a quarter of those at the first meeting were at the second. It was a tough blow considering all we've been through recently. But, that's how things go I suppose.

On the up side, a new friend of ours came early to get briefed because she has a thousand other groups she helps on the same day (something we knew in advance) and if she couldn’t stay for the meeting, she wanted to come early to uphold her commitment. Seven other great friends and volunteers also made the meeting. These people can always be counted on, they always give their all, and we simply cannot thank them enough for being who they are.

With that out of the way, our next fly-in meeting is April 17th. How many people do you think will be there? Enough? Tune in next time for the answer.

Vintage Flying in Australia

2012-03-26T22:36:00.000-04:00

Some of you may remember our story from a few years back about running into Roy and Primrose Fox at Oshkosh. Hailing from Australia, and possessing wonderful personalities, we quickly took a liking to them. Roy and Primrose were there because Roy had brought his Comper Swift and Klemm to the show and I couldn’t believe our luck of running into them.

You know those kinds of people you meet and immediately consider them friends? Roy and Primrose are those people. It’s a shame we live so far away from each other. It would be great to spend more time with them. If you ever get a chance to meet them I advise you to do so.

Anyway, the reason I brought up the subject was that I had wanted to go see Roy and fly with him to the Antique Aeroplane Association Fly-In at Cowra. Unfortunately, several things blew that out of our calendar. Therefore, I am forced to get my jollies from the fly-in by knowing Roy was there wearing the official Lee Bottom uniform. He bought the sweatshirt last year when he visited our fly-in and he sent us the photo seen here to let us know he’s getting the full mileage out of it.

Note: Roy and Primrose have an airport in Australia that is amazingly similar to Lee Bottom. In fact they could almost be considered, like the old Sister Cities, Sister Flying Fields. Look for us to have more information about their place in the future.

They're Out There

2012-02-28T21:53:00.000-05:00

Inside the airline industry, aviators are rare. Today they have been replaced by pilots.

Pilots don't fly outside of work. Most have no interest in flying small planes. The majority of them would prefer the computer do all the work. And they certainly can't do a visual approach.

Yes, I was exaggerating. There are some pilots who can fly a good visual approach but not many. Granted, nobody seems to care. But for folks with an interest in real aviation, folks like me (us, you know who you are), it does get lonely at times. I just wish there were more aviators than pilots and, at the very least, that the pilots had the slightest interest in aviation. On the other hand, I suspect the pilots that fly with me are thinking, "I really wish this guy liked to talk about baseball stats, playing X-Box, or the difference in rivet patterns on the Airbus 319 vs 320". I don't care for either.

Fortunately there is an upside to this disconnect. Through the years I have learned how best to spot, seek out, and locate the old school underground. You know; the aviators. They're not easy to find for good reason.

Like rats in the city, the government wants rid of us and citizens wish we'd go away. The final strain of aviators are marked for extermination. Yet, like all well intentioned federal programs, the solution replaces perceived problems with real. In this case mice.

Bred in FAA sanctioned schools, their rate of multiplication necessitates inbreeding. Each one like the last, all chasing the cheese, they come out highly polished, spit-shined and creased. Looking the part is all the feds want and that's what they get.
Whenever I end up flying with someone whose existence lies within the bands on their shoulders, I find myself looking for clues; clues that my people are still out there somewhere. Like tracks in the forest or broken twigs on a path, each little calling card lifts me up for although I cannot see them, I know they are there.

The photo at the very top is one such example. Upon first viewing, you likely didn't notice anything special about it. Yet I suspect a few aviators out there might have seen what I do every time I cross that threshold. There, on centerline, just short of the runway end-stripe, are two sets of tire marks. Those are aviator tracks.

How do I know? In subtle aviator code, the placement of the marks indicate they were clearly intentional. Roughly translated they say, "I am a pilot and I will not go away".

Whenever I see them I start to laugh with great joy. Beside me, pilots appear concerned as though I may have lost my mind. In reality though, I laugh with renewed sanity; sanity returned with the knowledge that I am not alone.

The Fly-In That Cried Wolf?

2012-02-28T14:55:00.000-05:00

I really like that title. It’s funny. Plus, as one friend said last year when we asked if they would be attending, “Sorry, but I can’t be there. Plus, you’ve said this might be the last for the past few years”. The meaning there was that they thought we were crying wolf. That’s why I like the title. There is much more there than meets the eye.

Today, it seems everyone takes everything for granted. In turn, our world is filled with “looking back” headlines. Yeah, nobody seems to care or care enough until it is too late. They vote or don’t vote and then find themselves in a world of hurt because who was elected; people put things on their bucket lists and then get upset when that thing they always wanted to do disappears all together before they could do it; friends cry out in disbelief when one of theirs jumps off a bridge when all along the person was telling them they were going to jump off a bridge. Yep, nobody cares until something is gone. Then they get all worked up. Unfortunately, too late is too late.

How does this relate to Lee Bottom? Well, just in case you haven’t noticed, we’ve been telling everyone for several years now that the end of all the fun was coming unless we got some help. I love the old saying, “The man who spends freely has many friends”. And I must admit it often feels very much like a description of our fly-in. Though in reality, it is our fault for not fully explaining how much work and money goes into it. A few weeks back we corrected that error when we laid it on the table and asked for help. Last Tuesday we held a fly-in meeting to see if anyone got the message.

We have always said we have the best airport family and last Tuesday they proved it. Nearly 80% of the small cross section of people (38) we emailed, plus several more that were not on the list, showed up to see how they could help. That’s a pretty impressive showing and I think it indicates that as long as people are told up front what they are up against, and what they need to do to make things work, if they support the goal they’ll do their best to be part of the team. Thanks to all of you who attended; many of you driving several hours to be there.

What did the people in the meeting learn? We need help and we need sponsors and we need them by May 1st. That’s what it all comes down to. Thanks to those who attended, the fly-in moves forward.

Did you get that? The fly-in moves forward.

Wait! Don’t stop reading; there is more to do.

Lining the walls of the conference room were large yellow sheets of paper listing items with which we need help. These items were labeled A, B, and C. In past years, we had been responsible for all the items and even I found it hard to believe how many there were. By themselves, there were 32 A items. The “A’s” are critical to having the fly-in.

Thankfully many of the A items were accepted but we still need people to step up to help. As we told our airport family members in the meeting, when we say help, this is what we mean:

* Helping this year is of no help to us unless you are willing to commit to at least 3-5 years.

A person who volunteers only one year merely kicks the can down the road. When someone helps from year to year they know where things are and how to do it and nobody has to train them or watch over them to make sure things are being done correctly.

* If you commit to help you are actually committing yourself to help. In the past we have had to schedule surgeries around the fly-in, miss weddings, funerals, and sporting events, and have even worked the event with injuries that would make most people no-shows. Therefore, if you commit to be part of the team, you will be doing the same. You will tell your daughters that they will not be getting married on the weekend of the fly-in, games that you would love to see will be recorded and watched later, a plumbing leak in your house will be fixed by someone before hand or it will continue to leak until the fly-in is over, you will not be attending re-unions that fall on that weekend or the weeks leading up to it, and you will not cry about the nail you drove through your hand last night as it will have to stay there until the fly-in is over and cleaned up. That’s what we have to do and if you are telling the rest of the team you’ll be there to help, then you will.

* Helping means working year round, not just at events. We have a rule of thumb that if something isn’t planned by May, then it probably isn’t going to happen at this year’s event since May through September is spent on implementing the plan.

* Fun. Even if you have a nail sticking out of your hand, you’ll have fun. There is no reason for any of us to do this unless we are having fun. So, if all the planes and great people who attend the event don’t sound like fun to you, then there is no reason to volunteer. Yes, leading up to the event and during, it often feels very much like work. Yet without fail, half-way through the fly-in you always start thinking about the next one. Nothing worthwhile is easy and anything that is fun has a price.

Here I think it is important to share another thing we shared with our airport family members at the meeting. People often act as though, or think they are helping us, Ginger and myself, when they volunteer. Well, that isn’t the case. When you volunteer, you are helping aviation.

We are doing this for aviation and not ourselves. I realize that may be hard to understand but that’s the reality and if you aren’t in this for aviation, then you are in it for the wrong reason and you are keeping us involved in something we don’t need to keep doing. Yes, it can be fun but it is a lot of work and it is work we don’t need if aviation doesn’t want it. So just to be clear, when you help us just to help us you are not supporting our hobby or being helpful. You are perpetuating senseless work. If you get it, and you want to be part of the family, then there is plenty of room for you to help.

What do we specifically need? We still need volunteers to take charge of some A-items, and we really need sponsorship commitments. This year’s fly-in budget is $30,055 not including the airport operations budget which is an additional $20,000+. I should also note that by trimming costs everywhere we can find them, having a caterer do the food (they bear the cost), and by doubling last years attendance, we would just break even with $12,000 in sponsorship commitments. Any of this that isn’t sponsored we eat.

Those of you who have had the Lee Bottom Fly-In on your bucket lists for several years should take note. We are in the process of making long term plans for the airport and that involves the discussion of changing the flavor of the fly-in, Sinful Sundays, and even the airport in the coming years. Although we think the changes, if any, will be seen as favorable, with the future in mind everything is on the table for modification. Therefore, it is time for you to scratch The Wood, Fabric, & Tailwheels Fly-In off your list.

As for everyone else, our airport family members can work their butts off but if you do not attend, then it will all have been for nothing. Gas will be going up this summer, everyone will be complaining about it, and fly-ins everywhere will continue to thin with fewer and fewer people flying. If you would like to see this airport come out the other end as one of the survivors, you should start making your plans now to attend. Put September 29, 2012 on your calendar, set aside the money and time, find someone you’d like to share aviation with, and come hang out in one of the last places your kind are welcome.

With your support, enough volunteers, and the needed sponsorships, you’ll never hear us talk of ending the event again.

A-item coordinators still needed:

Trams

Medical Emergencies

Store Apparel and Cashiers

White Cone Adoption

Event Listings

Please let us know if you are up for doing any of these.
http://www.leebottom.com/

Volunteers Needed at Sinful Sundays

2012-02-27T09:43:00.000-05:00

Started in 2004 as a destination for a Sunday flight, the Sinful Sunday events have grown over the years from a few visiting friends to an average of 100 planes on good weather days.

At last year's August event, we realized that if it were not for our family members and their friends, we would have needed to cancel the event because no one else was here to 'work' when things started to get into full swing. Most of you have come to know Rich's Mom, Betty, and Ginger's parents, Wayne and Donna, as they are at most of the airport events. You will also find them working hard and donating funds and items to ensure that everyone has a great time during all the events. But, did you know that none of them are pilots? And, did you realize that they travel around 200 miles, one way, just to be here and often return to their homes on the same day?

In the past 8 years, we have continued to host these events through our own medical emergencies, while family members have been in the hospital, and with very little sleep. We've re-organized and rescheduled appointments and work to ensure the grounds are ready for your presence. Vacations are delayed or not taken, repairs and upgrades needed to our home are postponed, and we have to gracefully bow out of wedding invitations, parties, and family reunions. Ginger shops diligently for days to find the best prices on the finest ice cream and supplies so we can continue to offer quality to you at an affordable price. The car is packed to the brim with needed supplies during at least 3 trips into Louisville per event.

Yes, we have had a few regular volunteers who have been great (and are not related to us). Over the past 3 or 4 years, you’ve seen Jack at most every event serving lunches. Jack is also not a pilot and it is sad to say that no one has ever offered him a ride in an airplane, maybe that will change this year. Jim has done everything from washing dishes to serving up whipped cream to greeting people as they arrive. And, Crystal and Mike have recently joined in on the fun by ensuring you register and can find a t-shirt or hat in the right size and color. Bob and Berry are usually busy in the background with things no one else likes to do - like trash.

Yet, we find that to do this event comfortably for everyone, around 19 or 20 people are needed. And, to really be helpful, it needs to be the same 19 or 20 people at every event. Additionally, they need to be able to be here before things start and stay until the last person departs for home and admittedly, some of it is demanding, fast paced, and requires standing.

So, we are putting it out to all of you to see if these events continue. We know that we have personal commitments this summer that will take us away from some of these events and therefore can not do it without your help. Do you want to ensure that others have a fun flying destination? If so, please volunteer! CLICK HERE

A Future for Lee Bottom?

2012-02-18T16:48:00.000-05:00

"An end result, imagined clearly and acted upon with expectation, will always force the circumstances necessary to bring about its own manifestation, no matter how unpredictable, unlikely, or even impossible those circumstances may have previously seemed." --A Note from the Universe

Lee Bottom Flying Field has some of the best supporters in the world. Over time, other airport owners have confirmed it. Most of them simply cannot believe how well our Lee Bottom Family steps up when needed. Every year, our calendars ship out to enthusiasts all over the world who share a single passion, the sport of aviation. Along with that, thousands upon thousands of people read our reports from the field and editorials found in NORDO News and elsewhere. Sometimes members of our family don’t see eye to eye with us but more commonly they do. Whatever the case though, they know they are welcome to say whatever they want as long as their passion, their goal, is the long term survival of the field. To all of you who do everything you can to support Lee Bottom and aviation, we want to express our most sincere thanks. As you read the following paragraphs, we hope you don’t get the wrong idea. Read it, absorb it, and if you have any questions send them our way.

At least once every year, usually around the fly-in, the wear and tear on us begins to show. Anyone who has been reading our NORDO News for the last three years can attest to that. But what causes it? Do you really know? Having discussed it at length between ourselves for many years, we have now decided it’s time for us to plot a new future for Lee Bottom Flying Field.

Before I discuss the future of the field, I would like to discuss some background issues. Let’s call these “Things we all know are true but may not discuss”. To help you fully understand what it is like to own an airport like Lee Bottom Flying Field in the modern world, I will have to break the green wall of silence; a code known only to flying field owners. This unspoken vow of silence is best described by a very well known and well worn quote from the movies, “YOU CAN’T HANDLE THE TRUTH!”

Although I believe that most people can’t handle the truth or, at the very least they don’t want to hear it, I firmly believe it is far better for everyone to know it; all of it. Therefore, let me get straight to the point. Owning and operating a flying field is not always that fun. Really, it isn’t. In fact, it can be, and often is, a huge pain in the ass. As any owner could tell you but they won’t, it sucks money far faster than any aircraft, and it requires the expenditure of most your spare time to maintain it. There, I said it. That’s not the first time though.

Through the years, Ginger and I have explicitly warned people, those who excitedly notified us about their intent to purchase land and construct their own field, that is was a bad idea. To date, every single one of them has, at some point in time, conceded they should have listened to us. Acres of valuable farmland that produce profit, leveled and maintained for the use of aircraft, is the most illogical and financially unsound bit of thinking I have ever known. Yet, whenever we drop our guard and share this with people, they look at us like we’re joking. We aren’t. If you want proof, just think of all the airports and strips that have closed during the past two decades. If they’re so great, where did they go?

So why then do people think flying field ownership would be great? We know why. Every day of every year, some pilot who loves to fly goes to the airport, jumps in their airplane, and does just that. Along the way to the air they see friends, other airplanes, and they think about something they enjoy; flying. Once in the air, they have fun. If they fly to an aviation event they see more people like themselves, they have a good time, and then fly home still having fun. When they land at home, having just had a great flight, the airport is the last thing they see. All this combines in the mind to form the subconscious notion that the airport is the source of all aviation fun. But ask yourself, how many vintage automobile enthusiasts take out twenty acres of farmland to build a lane and a half, pot-holed, gravel road to drive around on? None. Yet, the simulated 50’s diner in a garage is so cliché that there are companies devoted to selling items that help you build such a thing. To old car enthusiasts, the diner is the airport, yet none of them go out and try to build and operate a full scale diner just to attract cars. That would be stupid. And yet people still think owning an airport would be great. Maybe that’s our fault.

Ginger and I have always tried so hard to be positive in telling people how great Lee Bottom is and how much we love meeting all the new people, we’ve actually made airport ownership seem easy. When we were up to our elbows in crap, sometimes literally, we put out posts about the joys of mowing the grass. When more dollars went out than came in, we posted about how nice it is to watch planes take off and land. But for the longest time, we never told people how hard it really is because when someone asks you how you are doing, they want to hear “I’m doing great” and when things are not good they really don’t want to hear it. There comes a point though where people should be told how difficult it really is and that’s what we’re hoping to do. Yes, there have been many great times and we have made some great friends because of the airport, but it certainly hasn’t been a cake-walk. Admittedly, if it weren’t for all the people who contribute every year, we’d have sold the place ages ago when we had the chance. And of course, there’s the fact that we love it and want to see it survive against harsh realities.

Hanging in there? We realize this may be a lot to digest but there is a point to it all.

Airports may be absolutely critical to the sport of aviation but when they are not used or supported they are not fun and they make no sense and they go away. In a world where so much is out of your control, the use and support of your favorite airport and aviation event may seem like a no-brainer. But in the real world, when it comes to talk or action, talk too often talk wins. Let me give you some examples.

1) A few years back, a local power company began erecting towers a few miles south of the airport and making plans to run power lines across the river. We only found out because a local pilot asked us about them. Being so busy with the airport, we had not flown in months and had not seen them ourselves. When we started looking into the issue, it became apparent they had conveniently “missed” our public use airport on the charts. Immediately pointing this out to the FAA brought their project to a halt while a determination on the project was sought. During this process, we put the word out to everyone on our list (around 7000) with emails, phone calls, etc. This was done because the FAA was allowing comments on the project and we wanted to give everyone the chance to speak up for an airport and the sport of aviation. Many people responded with disbelief, others snipped about greedy electrical companies, and others grumbled louder than usual. In the end though, three people commented; three people. YES, you read that right; just three people.

2) Being a mere thirty miles up-river from Louisville, our area has one of the highest concentrations of pilots in the country. This is thanks to the UPS air hub being based at Standiford Airport. Known also as a company that is very philanthropic to local causes, one of three fly-in planning volunteers, who is also a pilot at the company, attempted to gain UPS sponsorship for the fly-in. After several conversations, she was told that if enough UPS people could show they volunteer time at the airport then we would have a good chance of gaining the sponsorship. It was also pointed out that it should be easy because UPS values volunteering so much, they have a way for employees to sign onto the company website and list their volunteer time. Now, I’m not going to tell you how few employees actually did that. Instead, I will just say that we didn’t get the sponsorship.

3) The final example I would like to include is this. Over the past decade, as many as four EAA Vintage board members have lived within 100 miles of Lee Bottom. None of them ever visited the airport or attended a single event. After years of assuming they were interested in supporting aviation and inviting them to events, we gave up (and took a different approach).

Are you seeing a pattern here? Ultimately, I believe a lot of people think we get more support than what we do.

Why are we discussing the subject? Late last year, Ginger and I began planning the next twenty years of our lives. To many of you that may sound odd but that’s how we think; current, five, ten, and twenty years. Our plans included what we’d like to be doing and where we’d like to be at each sign-post. Critical to them all was Lee Bottom.

One thing I’ve never shared about the airport is something Fritz told me shortly before he died. He said he knew I would do everything in my power to keep Lee Bottom an airport but if I couldn’t, then I should do whatever I want with it and move onto a boat in the Caribbean. That’s another reason I loved the old guy so much; we thought just alike. Unfortunately for the boat dealer, I would prefer to keep Lee Bottom an airport. I would also prefer that everyone came along for the ride.

What I’m about to tell you, you’ll never hear anywhere else. Therefore, I hope you read it, take some time to digest it, and then join in the effort. Here goes.

Aviation as we have known it is dead and it is not coming back. Sport Pilot qualified aircraft are not going to bring it back. Young Eagles is not nor will it ever bring it back. Likewise, EAA and AOPA are not going to bring it back. And, unless each and every aviation enthusiast makes it their mission to save the sport of aviation, we might as well go ahead and send flowers in the name of “We sat by and watched” to the funeral home. It really is that simple.

Am I saying we should abandon aviation? No. Am I saying that a lot of people are abandoning aviation? Yes. And because of that, we must be willing to consider new ideas and we must stop the loss.

What can you do? Well, let me say that sending emails to your friends about all the evil things government is doing to aviation is not the solution. Ultimately, you are the government and you must become active. Aviation has always been one of America’s greatest symbols of freedom and if you want your freedom preserved, you must preserve it. If you want something saved you must save it. Yet, in a time when pilots worry “what is the government going to do to my airport next” owners of airports like ours, airports that offer a way around the razor wire, fencing, and SIDA badges, sit here looking for ways to secure a future. Unfortunately, reality dictates that some fields will disappear.

With ever expanding development and encroachment on airports, some airports will have to go despite how we feel about them. Try as we may, the contraction and consolidation of aviation will thin them out. Fortunately, every change offers opportunities. Lee Bottom is one of them.

Located within an eight hour drive of over 80% of the population of the United States and yet on the last undeveloped section of the Ohio River, the area offers the perfect chance for aviation to come together to save one old fashioned airport for future generations to enjoy. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Yet I feel I must once again point out that opportunity must be met with action; otherwise Lee Bottom too will be a thing of the past.

Is it worth preserving? Should it be preserved? Will it be here in twenty years? We have a plan that would work, but we can’t do it alone.

During the past year, I have personally spoken with some of aviation’s best known movers and shakers about the future of Lee Bottom Flying Field. As usual our ambitions are big and in speaking with these people the goal was to get a feel for how our idea played to a larger market. Thankfully, everyone I have spoken with is supportive and even open to helping. Yet, without your support, we just don’t see the purpose. Here’s why.

Lee Bottom is as much an idea as it is an airport. It is that place you think of when you haven’t flown in weeks; it’s the place you know you will be welcomed even before you arrive; it’s that place from your childhood where you took your first airplane ride. Lee Bottom is what aviation is supposed to be and it is the people who want that to survive who will determine its future.

With that out in the open, let’s discuss the first action item on the list. If we are to move forward with our long term plans for the airport, we feel it is important to first understand the demand, and amount of support, that actually exists for our annual fall event called The Wood, Fabric, & Tailwheels Fly-In. Although this event brought us to where we are today, it continues to cause us induced heartburn and some things must be sorted out for it to continue. Let me explain.

In the past, whenever we have attempted to discuss this subject, the number one response has been something along the lines of “have a cookout and let them pee in the woods”. Although it may seem simple and harmless, to us it says so much more to us. Let me spell it out. If someone thinks the size of the fly-in is the problem, then they do not understand why we are doing this. And, if someone thinks making the fly-in simpler would solve our problems then they too do not know why we are doing this. Here’s where the problem is coming from. ARE YOU READY??? Take a deep breath; let it out; now read: We are not doing this for ourselves.

Yes, we understand that some people likely believe they are just supporting our hobby when they support the fly-in but that just isn’t the case. When you support these events, you are supporting the aviation community by giving it substance; something more than just you and your airplane. You are giving it a sense of community. And if aviation doesn’t want that, then we certainly aren’t going to waste our time grilling hamburgers for 13 people who want free food and entertainment. It is time for people to understand that they aren’t helping us, they are helping themselves. If people are just coming to support us, then they need to stop because they are causing us to continue our efforts to support aviation when the demand doesn’t really exist. Does that make sense? We hope so. It is critical to the future of Lee Bottom.

So, here’s where we are with this project. This Tuesday, we are having a meeting to determine how much interest there really is in the fly-in. If there turns out to be enough people on hand willing to commit to it, really commit to it, people who understand it takes money, time, and effort to host such an event, then we will continue to have it. If there is not enough support, last year will have been the last and we will move on to the next item on the list. If you are thinking this was really short notice, that’s not the case. We invited a core group of people to this event a month ago. The reason we are now telling the larger group about it is because soon there will be several more opportunities for you to become involved in the future of Lee Bottom. It is our hope that you will take this time to consider what it is that you could contribute to the effort so that when the next items come around, you’ll be ready to act. And if you are interested in, truly interested in helping with the fly-in, email us and we’ll get you the information for the meeting.

As I said earlier, Lee Bottom Flying Field has the best supporters in the world. Thanks to them, Lee Bottom has thrived when other fields suffered. Yet if we are to insure a long life for the airport, if we are to protect it from development and the march of time, we must take this opportunity to do so. The realities of aviation are upon us and we must face them head on, early, and strong.

Did You Know?

2012-02-11T23:06:00.000-05:00

Did you know that not every NORDO News blog post makes it to the newsletter? Yes that’s right; some posts are only received by those who have signed up to follow the blog or one of our social media sites. Therefore, if you’re not signed up, you’ve been missing a lot of inside information and editorials that can’t be found anywhere else.

To get the most recent NORDO News posts and dare to read editorials, sign up now. Here’s how:

Under the header NORDO News, at the top of this page and to the right of the photo slide-show, you will see a box that says “Follow our blog via email”. Below that title is a box where you type your email and then click “submit”. You are now signed up to receive every NORDO News posts.

If you want even more, look us up on social media. The Lee Bottom Flying Field facebook page routinely has photos from around the field that are not included anywhere else. These posts often come from people who have visited the airport and you are welcome to add some of your own.

The Calendars Have Left the Building

2012-02-11T22:29:00.001-05:00

It’s that time of year again. The limited edition Lee Bottom Flying Field calendars are on the way to their new owners. Printed every year since 1987, these old fashioned items are now a quarter of a century old tradition. If you receive one, we hope you have someplace special to hang it and put it to good use.

Hanging in offices, hangars, and homes around the world, the Lee Bottom Flying Field calendars have become somewhat of a secret handshake for true aviators. Therefore, if you love the good old-fashioned sport of aviation, and you see one of these hanging on a stranger’s wall, without a word spoken you can almost guarantee you are among friends.

As always, we hope you enjoy them.

Disclaimer: If you are not a true aviator, you have received this calendar in error; please give it to someone who is. This will save everyone some time and heartache. Any attempts to pass yourself off as a true aviator in order to keep the calendar will be discovered and you will be appropriately punished. Approved courses of punishment include tours of the local FSDO, one day as a volunteer stand-in for TSA cavity search training, three hours of listening to Michael Bolton, and the installation of radios in your favorite antique. You have been warned.

A Story to Tell

2012-02-10T22:11:00.000-05:00

Looking back through the first three rows.

"Three type ratings, an airline job, one airport, well over a hundred different airplanes, countless fly-ins, and a marriage have all come into my life since I last stood on these grounds." My mind raced with disbelief. "Could I have actually lost grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, acquaintances, and my father, in that period?" A scan of my memory confirmed the details, all of them points on a timeline. Yet somehow, time at Galesburg had stood still.

Earlier in the day, lifting up and away from the sweet smell of grass, my free hand reached for a chart. Lodged firmly between the combing and windscreen, a GPS plotted a future that I ignored. Having never trusted electronics, the chart was my choice and I worked to flip it open. Excited cannot explain how I felt.

Since the last snowflakes of Winter my trip had been planned. Seven months later, it was all coming together. Up front the “mail pit” was filled with bags. At capacity, the aft compartment bulged with degreaser and towels. Down in the cockpit, a pilot was going home.

Home has many definitions but they all have one thing in common; you can never go there again. I’ve found this true is so many places that, after all the planning I almost didn’t take off. Let downs are tough when you’ve been expecting great things. Yet, at the last minute, I knew if I did not go I would regret it. And so, on a September Wednesday, I pulled ten blades and away I went to the National Stearman Fly-In. After all, I had a story to tell.

Stearman C3B with a classic car at Galesburg

Smooth, clear, and fast was the trip. Inside, the airspeed read one hundred. Outside, section lines said otherwise. Cross a border, look at the watch, cross the other side, mark time. Grabbing the GPS to verify my math, I could see I was doing about one-fifty. It would be a beautiful but uncharacteristically short flight and I would have to work hard to not to miss my landmarks.

Regulars to Galesburg can get anywhere by the railroad tracks. For me, the iron compass was critical. Leading into town, a bend in the line would mark the arrival. From there I would set up for the grass and slip quietly to Earth. I’ll never forget my first time.

The year was 1997 and Old Bess’ engine was still pinking from heat when I first saw the vision of beauty. Having just arrived at our first Stearman Fly-In, sensory overload was approaching when all else vanished. There in the grass, seemingly by herself, sat a silver and red square tail. She was amazing. Walking toward her, I drifted by others that paled in comparison. She was even prettier up close; A thing of vintage beauty; A Varga Girl in a Hooters Calendar. My oh my was I in love.

Tom Lowe's C3R

Walking around, crouching down, and going up on the tips of my toes occupied the ten minutes that passed before the owner said hello. He had been there all along but my eyes saw only the plane. Tom Lowe was that man.

Anyone who has ever met Tom likes him, period. Placed firmly on most short-lists of nicest people they’ve ever met, he simply is best described as being “a great guy”. And, that’s exactly how I found him to be. He didn’t laugh at me for drooling on his plane, every stupid question was answered politely without condescension, and he even offered to let me look inside.

Then he excused himself, leaving me there to enjoy.

A peek inside the cockpit of "The R".

Later, I would tell my friends about the encounter with the airplane and the owner. “Oh you met Tom” they said, and from the tone in their voices, I could tell he was one of the fixtures of the event. “Tom was one of the guys that started Galesburg.” Yep, I was right, Tom was certainly a man of significance when it came to Galesburg and now I was embarrassed. “Great, I must have looked like an idiot out there” I said to my friends. “Nah, you look like an idiot all the time”. “Good point” was my response and the conversation moved on.

Rows upon rows of Stearman Aircraft

Back then, my life was vastly different. Owning little but ambition, I hopped rides in my Stearman wherever I could. This Illinois town was one of those places.

The world’s largest gathering of Stearmans is a great market for scenic biplane rides and for several squares on the calendar I flew into the last light of day. Because of this, by the time I was done, the evening’s festivities would be well under way and I would be alone on the flight line. Tying the last rope and securing the covers one evening, I strolled carelessly through the planes like night security at the mall. Only the music from the hangar could be heard among the airframes secured to their wires. Daylight was fading and once again I found myself with the “square tail” Stearman C3R. Alone with the plane, I pondered its history and context, when once again the owner said hello.

There's no shortage of cool Stearman Aircraft at Galesburg

Envy is not something I do. Coveting another man’s airplane? Now that is something all-together different. When Tom walked up, I was therefore extremely embarrassed. One rule of manhood is to never let another see you want something they have. Not only can it cost you dearly in dollars should a deal ever happen, it removes large portions of one’s self-respect. Oh well, I was had. Fortunately, Mr. Lowe was every bit the good guy my friends believed.

“Are you going to be out here early tomorrow?” he said. “Yes sir”, I replied. To which he responded, “Then I think you need a ride in this thing.” He was right.

The next morning I rode with Tom out over the corn fields to a point where he let me take the controls. I’ll never forget that flight as he led me through maneuvers to show me the plane, how airspeed would bleed off in turns, how it behaved in level and slow flight, and what if felt like to fly such history, I sat grinning ear to ear. It had just experienced my first true antique and I would never be the same.

Upon landing, I thanked Tom profusely and, to insure I wasn’t a nuisance, I walked away. Fourteen years later, I returned.

I was taxiing into a parking spot when I first saw her. There, a few rows back, was the silver and red beauty from all those years ago. My ride tied down and the area in order, I set out to see her.

My friends would have to wait, or so I thought.

Walking toward the C3R, a group of guys huddled nearby. Laughing and conversing, it was my friends and Tom Lowe. In an effort to not interrupt, I signaled hello to a buddy. As usual though, he insisted on pulling me in and, to those I did not know, I was promptly introduced. When things settled down and proper greetings were all in order, I took the opportunity to share the story I had come to tell.

Notice a lot of people are out flying their Stearmans.

“Tom, I know you don’t remember me but fourteen years ago I met you by this plane. I was here to hop rides but when I saw your plane just I had to come look it over. When you saw me drooling on it, you were very kind and offered me a ride. I know you don’t remember it, but I will never forget it. We flew out over the cornfields and once we were in the air you let me fly. You explained to me her aerodynamics, how she loses speed in a turn and how she feels when slow. The day of that flight was the last time I was at Galesburg. Now, fourteen years later, I want to thank you for that flight and tell you first hand the best part. When I finally made it back, I brought one myself,” and I turned to show him the C3B on the front line.

Tom knew the plane I was flying and was genuinely pleased with my story. He was, after all, largely responsible for me coming back and doing so in a “square tail”. Later that day I ran into him again and we talked about friends and other Stearmans we had flown. He too had been at the controls of the Stearman Cloud Boy owned by Ron Alexander (also owner of the C3B I was flying) and the mutual extremely rare experience left us both wishing there were more antiques left to fly. Unfortunately, I had nothing new for Tom to fly. But, being the guy he is, Tom had something for me. “Would you like to fly the R?” he said.

That's me taxiing the C3R back in after flying it around the Galesburg corn-fields.

The next day, fourteen years after my flight with Tom, on the same field, at the same event, I took to the air in “The R”, only this time I was alone. Roaring over the cornfields, I worked hard to take it all in. The most exciting years of my life were now defined, book-ended by this machine. The first true antique in which I ever flew was now the most recent model on a long list of those I had flown, and I wondered, “Where do I go from here”?


That's Tom on the right posing with me for a photo by "The R".

____________________________________________________________

If you ever have a chance to go to the National Stearman Fly-In at Galesburg, you should do it. It is a great gathering of wonderful aircraft and people. Everything about the event is warm and inviting and the planes are always flying. To give you an idea what it's like, below I am including a few of my favorite photos from the event.

They say the key to being a good photographer is never letting people see anything but your best photos. Well, quite frankly, I don't have time right now to run these through photo shop and pick only photos I would submit for revue. Therefore, you will just have to suffer through this fragment of the photos I took. I hope you enjoy them.


Marilyn and Pat; daughter and grandson of Lloyd Stearman. She was three when this plane was built.

Changes at EAA or Changing Times?

2012-02-06T00:29:00.000-05:00

Last month, the aviation public got its first view of changes that have been quietly sweeping through EAA. Unnoticed by rank and file members until that day, they have been occurring since Rod Hightower came to the party. Yet, let there be no doubt, these and many more have and will continue to happen. But are they that bad? It depends on what you believe about EAA.

There’s no question that many current and past EAA members are unhappy with the organization. Having started out as a grass roots, wrench it together in your basement, calloused hands type of assembly, it isn’t hard to understand why. Once a bastion of America’s salt of the earth, risk be damned, pursue your dreams citizens, in recent years it had become a bureaucracy of “Poberezny yes men” and ever lasting board members whose focus was Airventure, fundraising, and risk aversion. Then change happened.

That day, a quick scan of social networks and all other forms of messaging revealed immediately that people were not happy. Humans, by nature, do not like change. Pilots dislike the mere discussion. And so began the weekend of EAA facebook flaming.

One week later, fading embers gave up the remaining heat and it was over. Those who were let go were already talking of other options while those who would like to leave searched the horizon. Everyone else fell silent.

Looking back, it is apparent that some really good people were let go and some that should have been were not. Parallel to this, some of those remaining should have been promoted and some of those that were should not have been. That my friends, sums up the staff changes. Any questions?

As for the group’s leadership, EAA has been a free floating barge for some time. Yes, there was Paul and then there was Tom. Yet, despite all the good things I can say about both, the reality is that EAA has been adrift for the last five to ten years. Everyone knows this.

A few people still blame Paul, quite a few blame Tom, others who know the whole story say it was a combination of leadership, the board, and HQ employees that couldn’t say no. Whoever is right, in the process EAA became little more than Airventure and a magazine. But really, what group isn’t?

Look at any organization to see what defines the “group” and it almost always comes down to those who get the magazine and those that attend the event. You may not want to agree but that’s clearly what most organizations are. Those that are more have a spirit, a soul. EAA had that but most of it has gone. This is where the big debate about recent changes comes to a head; soul or money?

On the surface, the question of soul or money seems easy, doesn’t it? No real pilot would ever say money because aviation is a sport of souls. However, no successful organization ever operated long without money. So what’s a group to do? I believe Rod Hightower, and those around him, looked at the situation like a business, made decisions based on money, then, understanding they had to keep the membership involved, launched a plan to put the face of a soul on it. Now let me be clear, despite the evidence they are not being completely open with their members about changes, I am not saying they are being deceptive. Instead, I believe the new BMOC decided EAA needed to grow, broaden its base, and expand its level of influence and that to do so meant choosing money over soul, metal over fabric. Unfortunately, although I don’t know if it was the right decision, I do believe that had they chosen soul, to stay EAA, many more cuts would likely have been required. This too would have been wildly unpopular with members.

I wish I had a way of knowing how many true EAA members, in the spirit of the old days, exist today? Caution: being in love with the idea of being an old style EAA member does not make you one. Could EAA survive on them alone? Are there enough of them left? And what about the die-hard EAA members that complain but when talk turns to walk, they all want to go to Oshkosh because it is the biggest aviation event in the world? Are these people truly mad at EAA? If so, then wouldn’t they instead go to any number of other events struggling to attract followers? One would assume so yet, year after year, EAA members vote with their feet and go to Oshkosh after a year of bitching about Oshkosh. For leaders, it’s a tough place to be. This is no different than politicians dealing with constituents who complain about spending and then ask them to allocate money to their issue of choice; if people don’t like something, why do they keep coming back for more? For a group, or country for that matter, to be successful, everyone has to understand the issues at hand and be on the same team. Adapting to changing times EAA leadership understands. But, do the members?

What is it that EAA members are looking to get from EAA? My experience tells me they want to feel like part of a group, they like to attend Oshkosh, hope to read about homebuilt planes in Sport Aviation, and a few of them actually attend and are members of active EAA Chapters; remember those? Some of them still get together and go to Oshkosh as such. But, anymore a lot of them come away feeling like they brought a stage coach to a car show. Yes the old days are gone, but I believe most of the old time members are also. Yet, accept it or not, EAA continues to offer the things most modern members want.

Today the typical EAA member wants easy to build flying Lego kits like RV’s, feels unsafe without flight following, has no idea what a rudder is, and is deathly afraid of clouds. Yet, as soon as EAA puts an article in Sport Aviation about a turbine, they flip out. Yes, I flipped out over the hiring of Mac but I also don’t match the descriptors from the sentence two back. So what’s your excuse? Maybe you, like me, wish the old days never left, and if so, I feel for you. But let’s face it, as long as most members say one thing but truly believe another, EAA as we know it is dead.

Let me ask you something. If you were Rod Hightower and a member complained that you never covered cheap (inexpensive) airplanes, how would you respond? I know how I would because nearly every week I read some post from some guy bitching about all the expensive planes in Sport Aviation. The lucky few of these people I know get the same response, “Hey, I saw your post and wanted to let you know there’s a Fly-Baby for sale a hundred miles away for $7500, go get it”. All of them give me the same response, “Well, I’m not in the market for a plane”. “Then why the hell are you complaining about the lack of cheap airplanes?” I ask.

Ultimately, for EAA to support you as EAA, then you have to actually want EAA, not just talk about it. If you are happy getting a monthly magazine, like to attend the largest aviation event in the world as a member, and you like the way being an EAA member infers you are a little more of a pilot than others who are not, then hey, you are at the right place and you should be happy. But, if you wish all planes were taildraggers, ATC didn’t exist, and every runway was grass, then there are plenty of events for you to attend instead of Oshkosh. There’s this one in Southern Indiana next to the river but I digress.

If you’ve been reading my posts for some time, maybe you’re wondering what’s happened to me.

Yes, I have certainly had my share of issues with EAA through the years but I also truly long for the old days of EAA. Most in their hearts do not and, to me, that is a far bigger crisis than change at EAA.

Inside Information

2012-01-13T00:07:00.000-05:00

When a goal of yours is to keep your lobby groups hard at work, inside information is something to be cherished. And although almost any information can be bartered for or discovered through normal channels if you are persistent, knowing something others do not is harder and harder to come by these days. Let’s face it, the internet makes it tough. So, a few days ago, when I found out that EAA was about to let a large group of people go, I began to wonder if anything positive could be made of this negative.

What do you do with inside information? Well, I considered being the first to put it out there so the employees would have a heads up but decided against it because it wouldn't do anything but cause concern. Then I decided I would give it to an aviation news service but decided against it. If you’re asking why the second one came to mind, it’s because I think EAA needs to know that a lot of people are interested in what they are doing and a lot of people, including on the inside, don’t like a lot of it. Therefore, people on the inside are willing to share it with other people if they think it is going to help the broader membership base see what is going on behind the curtain. Essentially, it say’s to EAA, “You can’t hide.” Yet, my other thoughts easily won out and I didn’t post it at all.

I like EAA. Or maybe better said, I have met a lot of wonderful people that work for EAA, and in the end, I felt bad knowing people were going to lose jobs. Learning more, I also felt terrible for some who had already quietly agreed to go. EAA was in the middle of hope and change and all I could do is worry about who would be next. The ultimate answer, as I expected, was “the wrong ones”. But, I couldn’t let the information go to waste. At the very least I could let them know it wasn’t a secret.

Calling up EAA early this morning, I asked to talk to Dick Knapinski. When the receptionist asked what my call was in regards to, I said “About a reorganization that is going to go on today” and she seemed startled. That’s when I knew a lot of people didn’t know and I worried even more about the outcome. Would EAA end up better or worse?

Dick and I ended up having a long conversation and he was quite open and willing to talk without sharing too many details. Along the way he discussed what areas might be hit, what areas might be expanded, and what might be the reasons for these changes, never betraying EAA. In turn, he then patiently and politely listened to my thoughts about many of these areas and then we both decided it was time for us to get on with our lives. Dick’s a straight shooter from my experience and today I’m sure his job is a tough one. Not nearly as tough as those who lost theirs, but tough nonetheless. In any case, organizations sometimes become a little heavy in times of lean and tough decisions must be made. My concern is whether the right ones are.

After this conversation, I decided to let it go. I had done my part, called and questioned what was going on and what for, and everything was regrettably far outside my control.

For our friends who are no longer associated with EAA, you’ll always be welcome here. We know the job you did, what you had to work with, and what you were often up against, and we will not forget it.

As for the new executive positions, let me just say that EAA has gone overboard with their infatuation with celebrity. Good GA people were let go but Jeff Skyles, the guy who admittedly didn’t fly small planes for a long long time until fortune smiled on him and he bought a Waco, is now the VP in charge of Chapters and Youth Education. It was hard enough to swallow his articles knowing that someone believed a recent rediscovery of small planes, brought on by a water ditching, made him more qualified to talk about flying small planes that hundreds of other people with real qualifications and experience, but this new position is just silly. And God forbid you don’t talk politics to him. You might find he supports a lot of things that aren’t that friendly to aviation. Oh well, that seems to be EAA’s new direction.

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